Kristin Cashore
Like many of her readers, I was impatient and anxious for Kristin Cashore's newest novel, Fire, a loosely related companion to her debut novel Graceling. Would it be as engrossing and captivating as the first? Luckily, it did not disappoint. Fire is as strong and complex a character as Katsa, and the supporting characters and world of the Dells are just as fully developed and engrossing.
In the fall of 2009 Cashore spent nearly two weeks touring bookstores across the country in celebration of the October 5th release of Fire. I heard her talk at her last event at a bookstore in Washington DC.
Young Adult fantasy writer Kristin Cashore was raised in northeastern Pennsylvania. She did her undergraduate study at Williams College and received an M.A. from the Center for the Study of Children's Literature at Simmons College. Growing up, Cashore was a big reader and daydreamer; Simmons taught her discipline. Her final two courses at Simmons were in creative writing, which helped jumpstart her career as a professional writer.
Now, living in Cambridge Massachusetts, Cashore is in the middle of writing her next novel. Tentatively titled Bitterblue, it will return to the world of the Seven Kingdoms and focus on Queen Bitterblue, the ten-year-old girl who Katsa and Poe helped rescue at the end of Graceling. Cashore writes longhand and brought along her notebook to share with the audiences on her book tour.
Every thirty or forty pages she uses voice recognition software to transcribe her notebook pages into a word document. Describing herself as "slightly paranoid" about loosing her work, she keeps her notebooks in a fireproof/waterproof lock box--with the key on top. Laughing, she explains that in case of a break in she hopes the robbers will notice the box only contains papers and will leave it alone.
In addition to the notebooks she writes in--each novel may use four or five of these--she also keeps a planning notebook. She has found that each book needs to be written a different way, and each book teaches her how it needs to be written. Her book plan for Bitterblue, at about ninety pages long, is much weightier than the plans for her previous novels. But after writing 100 or so pages of her first draft she found that the plot was so complicated and that there were so many things she was trying to do, with a "thousand loose ends," that she was afraid she was going to forget things.
In each planning notebook, some pages are covered on both sides and some are just a few lines of writing. Each page is a plot point, or a character, or a theme that she is afraid she will forget to work into the story if she does not have it written down. When it comes to her writing process, a good day is churning out two full pages. Even if, as she frequently does, she crosses it all out the next day. Between the planning notebook, long-hand notebooks, transcribing pages, and then doing revisions on the computer, she says "there is a lot of tedium in this job." Every time she starts a new scene she refers back to a planning page. She goes through the lists to see what ideas she needs to remind herself of.
What helps set her novels apart from other young adult fantasy is that her stories are more character driven than focused on world-building. As Cashore puts it, "the core of my books are the characters. It starts with the characters...I try and build the world while building everything else so it is not that I spend the first fifty pages introducing the world--the world just kind of evolves with everything else." She does however, try to get as many of the little details right as possible. So even though her worlds, the Seven Kingdoms and the Dells, are made up places in a "vaguely medieval" time she wants the language, props, and events to fit. She researches questions such as: what are the ingredients of medieval bread? When were time pieces invented? When was the word "stacks" first used to describe library bookshelves? Especially important are injury details. Both Graceling and Fire feature plenty of action and adventure--characters receive injuries such as frost bite, blindness, and various wounds. Cashore explains that she wants the complications caused and recovery times to be as realistic as possible. Which explains why she harasses an uncle, who is a surgeon and wound specialist, with questions at family events (including funerals). Thankfully he seems to be pretty game.
When Cashore was writing Graceling she had no intention of returning to that universe. However, in one scene she had to create a backstory for a minor character. Later, she found she kept going back to that scene, wondering "what is that land. Where did that character come from?" Then the character of Fire came to her. She also had no plans to write a novel about Bitterblue, until her mother said "you know, I keep wondering about Bitterblue." Then, of course, Cashore started wondering about Bitterblue too. She says she would like to take a break from fantasy but the ideas just keep coming. "I don't know when I'm going to have time to write all these things I want to write."
She closed her talk answering a question about why she chooses to write for young adults. "The only thing I assume about my audience is that they're intelligent. I don't assume an age or gender." This comes across in her writing. Almost immediately I was caught up in the tension and constant struggle of the main characters in both novels. Katsa and Fire are similar in their physical and emotional strength. Katsa is gifted--or "graced"--with exceptional fighting skills, and Fire--the last remaining human "monster"--can control minds and also more than hold her own in a fight. Both have inner demons and family histories they are trying to overcome. Both learn to accept their natural leadership skills. Cashore has found a powerful style and believable voice that makes her novels a must for anyone who enjoys reading a well-crafted novel.
Visit her website for more details: http://kristincashore.blogspot.com
Contributor: Emily Griffin
Reviews
Fire: A Novel
Kristin Cashore
In the Dells there are monster animals and humans with exotic beauty, vibrant coloring, and supernatural gifts. Fire is the last of the human monsters and is irresistibly beautiful with a mane of hair the color of glittering fall foliage. Yet unlike her late father Cansrel, she does not want to cause harm with her supernatural ability to read and control minds. When Fire is summoned to assist the late king Nax's heir, King Nash, she reluctantly leaves her home and heads to the King's City. She agrees to use her abilities to help the kingdom in its war with the southern and northern lords. Fire not only assists the cause, but with Brigan's help eliminates both southern lords at a winter gala. Captured shortly thereafter, Fire is caught in the clutches of evil by northern lord Mydogg's soldiers and a Graceling, Leck. Fire is rescued, the war is won, family tree complexities are worked out, and the spark between Fire and Brigan burns brightly. Fire is the prequel to Cashore's first book Graceling (Harcourt, 2008). The bold adventure, a realistic fantasy world, well-rounded characters, a strong female protagonist, and superb writing make Fire a compelling read and one sure to win many honors. Highly Recommended. 2009, Dial Press (Penguin Young Readers Group), 480pp., $17.99 hc.. Ages 12 up. Reviewer: Leslie Schoenherr (Library Media Connection, November/December 2009).
Across the mountains from the scene of Cashore's first novel, Graceling (Harcourt, 2008/VOYA October 2008), King Nash of The Dells clings to his throne through the skill of his military commander, younger brother Brigan. The Dells are home to creatures called monsters, which resemble normal animals but for their brilliant coloration and their ability to enter others' minds. The last human monster is Fire, named by her father Cansrel for her startling red hair. Advisor to King Nash's father, Cansrel was widely feared and hated before his death, and Fire is glad to grow up quietly, far from the capital. But war is about to engulf Fire as the desperate king, beset by rivals, enlists her mind-controlling skills in his kingdom's defense. Complicating matters are the jealous protectiveness of Fire's old friend and lover Archer and her attraction to cool, selfcontained Prince Brigan. In the background, somehow influencing events, stands a strange boy with two different-colored eyes and an ominous ability to cloud others' minds. This prequel and companion to Graceling can be read independently. The only crossover character is the boy, whom readers of the previous book will recognize as the future King Leck of Monsea. There is plenty of action, but the focus is on Fire's internal struggle to define herself. Like Graceling heroine Katsa, Fire is a complicated, independent woman with a matter-of-fact attitude toward sex. Older readers will appreciate her difficult path to maturity and look forward to Cashore's projected third book, Bitterblue. VOYA CODES: 4Q 4P S (Better than most, marred only by occasional lapses; Broad general YA appeal; Senior High, defined as grades 10 to 12). 2009, Dial, 480p., $17.99. Ages 15 to 18. Reviewer: Kathleen Beck (VOYA, October 2009 (Vol. 32, No. 4))
Best Books:
Booklist Book Review Stars , Sep. 15, 2009; United States
Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books, 2009; United States
Publishers Weekly Book Review Stars, July 20, 2009; Cahners; United States
School Library Journal Best Books, 2009; United States
School Library Journal Book Review Stars, August 2009; Cahners; United States
Washington Post Best Kid's Books, 2009; United States
ISBN: 9780803734616
ISBN: 0803734611
Graceling
Kristin Cashore
Read by David Baker, Chelsea Mixon, Zachary Exton and a Full Cast
Kristin Cashore's well-developed characters are completely realized in this full-cast production. Chelsea Mixon portrays Lady Katsa, who was born with a horrifying "grace" for killing. Mixon's nuanced portrayal gives an inside view of the confusions that torment this "graceling." These conflicts increase after she meets Po, an empathetic graceling. Zachary Exton's depiction of Po's soft steadiness contrasts with Mixon's picture of Katsa's flaring tempers. Listeners will feel the power of the connection between the two and its building intensity. Even minor characters are richly rendered. Their interactions, thoughts, and actions are well integrated in David Baker's strong narration, which animates events and astutely measures emotions. Musical interludes, both regal and somber, are as plentiful as the plot twists, and the result is a production listeners won't soon forget. S.W. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award (c) AudioFile 2009, Portland, Maine 2009 (Orig. 2008), Full Cast Audio, Eleven CDs, $39.95. Ages young adult. Reviewer: Susie Wilde (Audiofile, July 2009).
ISBN: 9781934180891
ISBN: 1934180890
Graceling
Kristin Cashore
Katsa is a killer. The eighteen-year-old heroine of Kristin Cashore's Seven Kingdoms fights better than Bruce Lee on speed and always gets her man. That is the problem. Kat is weary of doing the dirty work of her uncle, King Randas. She is beginning to question her special grace, specifically the heightened power of fighting that came with her separate-colored eyes. Meeting Prince Po, a near-equal in the lethal arts, creates other questions for the young lady. As she and Po set off on a quest to discover why Po's kindly grandfather was kidnapped, the plot thickens into romance. Cashore's first novel contains all the requirements of fantasy: a world stuck in the medieval mode of swords and long-suffering peasants, a touch of magic, and non-stop action. But once she's gotten her moral priorities sorted out, Katsas real problem is not surviving impossible odds. For her, that's a bagatelle. Much harder is admitting her femininity and recognizing that love can have a place in her life. Still, it is fun watching Cashore's wonder woman single-handedly slay mountain lions and conquer impassable winter mountain passes in the course of rescuing the young queen of a rogue kingdom. It's fun watching her get her man, too. 2008, Harcourt, $17.00. Ages 14 up. Reviewer: Kathleen Karr (Children's Literature).
Katsa - a disarmingly strong female protagonist - is a "graceling," someone who possesses a special skill or talent. Katsa's skill is also her burden - she is an unbeatable assassin whom her uncle the king uses as his enforcer, a role Katsa despises. With a reputation as a deadly fighter, Katsa has few close allies, save her wizened advisor and brotherly cousin. When a stranger comes to their court, a graceling prince from a distant kingdom, Katsa meets her first true rival. Po seeks information regarding his kidnapped grandfather. Distrustful of each other's strengths and knowledge, Katsa and Po lock horns, but their physical and emotional struggle soon leads to mutual if guarded respect. Embarking on a joint mission to discover the reason behind the kidnapping of Po's grandfather, the two become friends, and then lovers. Their close bond becomes essential to their survival when they face an opponent whose grace is to manipulate people's perception of truth - something far more frightening than any physical power. Sharp dialogue, intense action, and a mysterious plot reveal the deep layers in this rich fantasy from debut author Kristin Cashore bursting with adventure, magic, and romance. Of particular note is the relationship that develops between Katsa and Po, who experience tremendous growth as individuals in addition to becoming a couple whose lives are inextricably intertwined. CCBC Category: Fiction for Young Adults. 2008, Harcourt, 471 pages, $17.00. Age 13 and older. Reviewer: CCBC (Cooperative Children's Book Center Choices 2009).
Best Books:
Booklist Best Books for Young Adults, 2009; American Library Association; United States
Booklist Book Review Stars , Oct. 1, 2008; United States
Capitol Choices, 2009; The Capitol Choices Committee; United States
Choices, 2009; Cooperative Children's Book Center; United States
Editors' Choice: Books for Youth, 2008; Booklist; United States
Kirkus Book Review Stars, September 1, 2008; United States
Publishers Weekly Best Children's Books, 2008; Publishers Weekly; United States
Publishers Weekly Book Review Stars, July 21, 2008; Cahners; United States
School Library Journal Best Books, 2008; Cahners; United States
School Library Journal Book Review Stars, October 2008; Cahners; United States
Top 10 SF/Fantasy for Youth, 2009; American Library Association-Booklist; United States
YALSA Best Books for Young Adults, 2009; American Library Association; United States
Awards, Honors, Prizes:
Andre Norton Award, 2008 Finalist United States
Battle of the (Kids') Books, 2009 Nominee United States
Cybils, 2008 Finalist Fantasy and Science Fiction (Young Adult) United States
Indies Choice Book Award, 2009 Honor Book Best Indie Young Adult Buzz Book United States
William C. Morrris Award, 2009 Finalist United States
State and Provincial Reading Lists:
Kentucky Bluegrass Award, 2010; Nominee; Grades 9-12; Kentucky
Volunteer State Book Award, 2010-2011; Nominee; Grades 7-12; Tennessee
ISBN: 9780152063962
ISBN: 015206396X
Added 1/25/2010
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